Great Instructions to Take with a Pinch of Salt Hunt

MissLead

Chevalier wrote: »

The worst offenders I've found are print cartridge manufacturers.

My printer displays an 'ink guide' to show how much ink is remaining - and the amount is always hopelessly inaccurate. The first time I saw my black ink cartridge was showing empty I dutifully changed it, because I'd a long print run to do and didn't want to risk printing 20 pages of nothing if it ran out in the middle.

The second time I hadn't got a new cartridge, and simply let it run. I finally got 110 more pages out of that cartridge, and realized how much I'd thrown away last time... :mad:

Even then, the printer kept flashing doom-laden alarms of 'Ink Low' all the way through. It's a conspiracy...

Using [threadbanner]box[/threadbanner]

Each time I change a printer cartridge, my printer 'cleans' the cartridge which uses an unholy amount of ink. Also, when the print colour mix I print is poor, i.e. heavily tinged with Red or blue, I then go in to printer maintenance to do a nozzle check. This almost always produces a print with bits missing so the printer then 'cleans' every cartridge (6 in my machine) and generally this happens again when print another test!!!I also get 'Printer does not recognise cartridge' which usually is solved purely by removing the cartridge and shaking it and re inserting it so AGAIN another clean.
I agree about cartridge manufacturers but I suspect the real culprit here is your printer!!! My printer simply will not permit you to do any more printing once you get the New Cartridge needed sign so I lose on every single cartridge I buy!!!. It really is time the manufacturers were brought to book somehow so that they stop robbing us!:mad:

ab48uk

Taffybiker wrote: »

There is actually a valid reason for this:
Rechargables are in the region of 1.2 volts as opposed to the 1.5 volts of standard types. This reduced voltage means that in order to achieve the same power as required by the item, the current has to be increased. In many cases this is not a problem but in others it can cause unneccessary heating of the item and could lead to damage.

I say again. Not a problem in many cases, but if your item is expensive I would definately play it safe and stick to standard batteries.

Standard types may start out at 1.5 volts - or slightly above - but they soon drop down under heavy load to around 1.0 volts.

Rechargeable types start out at around 1.2 volts but maintain that voltage for 80 - 90% of their life. This is why they are rated at 1.2 volts rather than 1.5.

I'm a little unsure about the 'increased current causing heating' comment. Rechargeables have higher capacities, in terms of mAH (milli amp hour) but the appliance will only draw as much current as it needs.

http://www.geocities.com/euro446/batts.html

Jambala

megsykins wrote: »

Similarly, I've been told that in a continually-used area it's better to leave the light always on than flick on / off - esp flourescent tubes as they require a burst of initial energy.

I don't know if you've ever seen the programme 'Mythbusters' on Discovery, but they tested this myth and determined that the amount of energy used in the initial 'burst' did not justify keeping the light switched on. I seem to remember that ~20 seconds of light was equal to the power used by the burst.

Jambala

Chevalier wrote: »

The worst offenders I've found are print cartridge manufacturers. My printer displays an 'ink guide' to show how much ink is remaining - and the amount is always hopelessly inaccurate.

It's the same for laser toner cartridges. At work, I have a Konica-Minolta colour laser on the network that's always alerting me to an empty toner or insisting that its drum unit is at its 'end-of-life'.

I ignore these until the colour runs out or the printout gets messy, then I change them. I usually get another 20-30% out of each cartridge from the time the printer starts moaning to when they actually run out.

ALL PRINTERS ARE LIARS! DOWN WITH PRINTERS! :rolleyes:

brownfrog

Segilla wrote: »

Ignore all 'use by' and 'sell by' dates. Use your eyes, nose and commonsense.
Compared with peope like me, brought up in the War years, people nowadays are far too 'exquisite' - and pay a high price in the shops for it.

Hear, hear! If people did that instead of blindly trusting labels, there would be far fewer food-poisoning cases.

littlescarlet wrote: »

PLEASE don't ignore 'Use By' dates especially on dairy produce and shellfish as the toxins don't always affect the smell and colour.

In theory, that's a good point, but it assumes the date label is truthful. Anyone who's ever worked in a supermarket knows that labels can be faked.

brownfrog

Jane_Blackford wrote: »

I am sure I have seen things to reset the chips to make them think the cartridges are full, just can't remember where - certainly not where they sell the original cartridges and no ink refills ...

Just type 'chip resetter' into Google and you'll find hundreds - usually about £6.

Jambala wrote: »

I ignore these until the colour runs out or the printout gets messy

You can usually get a bit extra - 50 or so pages - even at this point if you remove the cartridge and tip it gently (not shake it madly!) from side to side a few times.

Widewall wrote: »

Lidl's W5 tablets are excellent. You get twice as many tablets from a box, and in our water area the cleaning of the pots is just fine. Nor do we add any salt or rinse aid.

Another vote for these here - much better than most of the expensive brands.

makeup wrote: »

I like to have hot chocolate at work and have a jar of Options. They recommend 3 tsps which is way too much, I normally use 1 1/2 - 2 and it is fine - really tasty in fact!

Lidl's own-brand stuff is really nice (Morrison's Bettabuy is vile), and I use half the amount here too.

ZLS1984

Originally Posted by littlescarlet
PLEASE don't ignore 'Use By' dates especially on dairy produce and shellfish as the toxins don't always affect the smell and colour.

I actually buy out of date eggs as they are cheaper. 1 way to check that they are ok is this. Take a jug of cold water, place 1 egg in, if it floats then it is rank and if it sinks you can use it. Do this for all the eggs in the box, as once I only had 1 off egg in the box, as it has a crack in its shell.

Love-a-bargain_5

If you're out at a pub and you're not drinking alcoholic drinks (maybe designated driver?) then a soda water and lime is a cheap option rather than paying out pounds for orange juices and fizzy colas etc. After all, it's only fizzy water really. My local charges only **25p** for a half a soda water and lime (the soda comes out of that tap thing they use) and the lime is one shot of cordial. Its not many places you can get a drink that cheap these days! Happy xmas everyone x

estherg69

My tip is, don't cook the food from frozen, defrost it first by leaving it in the fridge or outside for a few hours. Many packets of frozen food say "for best results cook from frozen" but that will only add cooking time in the oven and you will use more power!! It doesn't make any difference if you defrost it first apart from your pocket. The trick is to make sure that is thoroughly defrosted before baking it. :A

suzikay

DH and I thought we'd save money by using non-brand inkjet printer cartridges from a reputable source, but it ended up costing us money :mad: . First, gradually the quality changed so that the colours printed were far from true, and then we discovered that the printer head was blocked. A new one costs a lot! In this case, something in the economical inks was blocking the ink channels in the printer head.

We decided it was a false economy.